The Secret Of The Unknown Goddess
by ToTheJourney2014
Summary: Hera is determined to hurt Hercules as much as possible. Liliandra is just as determined to make sure she doesn't succeed.


"You can not do this, Mother!" Liliandra screamed. Her eyes burned with rage as she faced the older goddess. "You have already taken his wife and his children from him. Is that not enough?"

Hera's eyes burned with hatred. "It will never be enough," she responded. "He is a monstrosity that never should have been born, and I will not rest until he realizes that fact. Your father has forbidden me from killing him, but he will not stop me from making his every waking moment a constant misery."

"But he is my brother," Liliandra protested. "I can not sit back and watch you do this. I will not allow it to happen, Mother."

"Your father made the mistake of bedding a human. I suppose that does make the mongrel your /half/ brother." She narrowed her eyes at her youngest child. "Do not allow that half to delude you into thinking you would mean anything to him. He hates all of the gods, and that includes you and your sisters."

"I /will/ stop you, Mother."

"It is already done. It is only a matter of time before the task is completed."

Liliandra let out a scream of frustration before teleporting herself to Zeus's throne room. "Father!" she screamed.

"What is it, Daughter?" Zeus asked in alarm. He read her mind instead of waiting for her to speak and then sighed. "Your mother is correct, Liliandra. There is nothing that can be done, not even by me."

"There is something that /I/ can do," Liliandra insisted, staring defiantly into her father's eyes.

"No!" Zeus shouted. "There is a reason you and your sisters have been hidden from all knowledge, Liliandra. No one is to know the three of you exist until the time comes for you to replace myself and my brothers."

"The decision has been made." Liliandra's eyes flashed with fire as her spine straightened with determination. "If you will not help, then I must be the one who intervenes. I will not allow Mother to do this!"

~C~

Iolaus walked at a leisurely pace along the road to Corinth. He wasn't in a hurry, even though it had been a while since he had seen his best friend. He had gladly accepted when Hercules had sent word to him to ask him to meet him in Corinth at the end of the week. He knew the two of them had a lot of catching up to do. He was only a couple of hours' walk away from Corinth now and still had two days to get there.

Sunlight glinted off of something metallic in the trees ahead of him, and Iolaus sighed. He should have known he wouldn't be able to finish his journey without getting into a fight. The roads were getting more and more dangerous for travelers. He sighed again, staying alert but not slowing his pace. He relaxed a little as he drew closer to the ambush and saw there were only three in the group of bandits laying in wait. He could handle three.

Liliandra watched from the side of the road, keeping herself invisible, as the three humans jumped out from the trees to attack Iolaus. She forced herself to wait while she watched to see what he would do. She smiled, impressed by Iolaus's fighting skills.

"Really, guys?" Iolaus asked in mock disbelief as the three men stepped out of the trees and surrounded him. "I don't have anything you want."

"We'll take that pouch you're carrying," the leader of the group responded.

"And your blood," a second one added with a chuckle.

Iolaus ducked the first sword swing, bracing his hands on the ground. He kicked up with his legs, swinging himself around as he did. He smiled in satisfaction as two of the men stumbled back from the force of his kicks, landing back on his feet. He ducked again, grabbing a rock and throwing it at the leader's head. He nodded as the leader slumped unconscious to the ground. He turned to face the other two, ducking their swords and delivering several fast punches.

Taking advantage of Iolaus being distracted by the second man, the third man pulled a jeweled dagger from the belt he wore around his waist. He gave a leering grin as he moved in for the kill, laughing as the second man fell unconscious to the ground.

Liliandra's eyes widened as she recognized her mother's dagger. "No!" she cred out. She materialized in front of Iolaus as he was turning around. She let out a scream of pain as the dagger that had been meant for him was thrust into her side.

The third man yelled in fright as the woman appeared from out of nowhere, turning around and running down the road toward Corinth as fast as his legs could carry him.

Iolaus reached out in shock, stumbling as he caught the woman when she collapsed. He slowly lowered himself to his knees, cradling her over his lap. "Where did you come from, and why did you do that?" he questioned her quietly.

"It does not matter," Liliandra replied softly. She reached up with one pale hand and gently caressed the side of his face as she looked into his eyes. "Now my brother will not have to mourn your death."

"I don't think I know your brother," Iolaus responded. He gently brushed her long dark hair back from her face before moving his hand to pull the dagger free from her side.

"Do not," she stated, placing her hand on his to stop him. "The blade is coated in a special poison. You will die instantly if you touch it." She winced in pain, drawing in a painful gasp of breath.

"How do you know that?" he asked. He looked down at the white robe she was wearing, the side of it slowly turning red from her blood. "Who are you?"

Liliandra shook her head. "It is forbidden for any to know of the existence of me and my sisters," she whispered. Her back arched up off of his lap as a spasm of pain ran through her. "The dagger belongs to my mother."

Iolaus studied the handle of the dagger as he tried to comfort her the best he could. His eyes widened as he recognized the symbols etched onto the jeweled handle. "You're a goddess," he murmured. "You're the daughter of Hera!"

"And of Zeus," Liliandra stated with confirmation.

Iolaus growled in frustration as he heard fast footsteps approaching. "I've got to get you out of sight." He stood up as carefully as he could, cradling her in his arms and carrying her into the trees just off the side of the road. He laid her down gently behind the closest bush. "I'll be right back." he said, promising her. "Don't you leave me." He looked at her for several more seconds before stepping back onto the road to meet whoever was coming.

"Iolaus!" Hercules called out in greeting as he came to a stop in front of his best friend. His eyes took in the blood that was covering Iolaus's clothes and immediately got concerned. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"It's not mine," Iolaus answered, not bothering to hide the bitterness in his tone. "What are you doing here, Hercules?"

"I arrived in Corinth earlier than I anticipated and decided to meet you along the way. I passed a bandit who was screaming about a witch appearing out of thin air and decided to investigate." He studied his friend closer. "What's going on, Iolaus?"

"She isn't a witch," Iolaus answered. He sighed and led Hercules over to the woman. "She's a goddess, and I think she's dying." He frowned as he looked up at his friend. "She saved my life, Hercules."

Hercules knelt down beside the woman and reached out to examine her wound, frowning when she grabbed his hand to stop him. "I'm not going to hurt you," he promised her. "I just need to see your wound. I need to see how much damage has been done."

Liliandra shook her head. "You can not touch the blade," she stated. "It will kill you." She grimaced in pain. "It is coated with morphinite."

Hercules stared at her for several moments. "You are a goddess. If you were human, you would have been killed instantly." He shook his head as he looked back at the dagger. "Hera," he muttered bitterly. He removed his shirt and wrapped it around the dagger. "I'll be careful," he promised her. He looked at Iolaus. "You'll need to hold her down."

Iolaus nodded, giving her an apologetic look as he knelt down on the other side of her and put one hand on her chest and the other on her hip, holding her down so that she wouldn't be able to move as Hercules pulled the dagger free. He cringed as she screamed, writhing under his hands. As soon as the dagger was out, he removed his own shirt and pressed it against the wound to stop the flow of blood. He looked up at Hercules. "She says she's the daughter of Zeus and Hera. Why would Hera let her own daughter die?"

"Impossible," Hercules responded. "I know all of my half-siblings, and she isn't one of them." He pulled a needle and thread from the pack on his hip, getting ready to stitch up the wound once Iolaus got the bleeding stopped. "She's a goddess, but she's got to be someone else's daughter."

Liliandra coughed, getting weaker from the poison coursing through her veins. "There are three of us you are not aware of, Brother. We were never supposed to be known until the time comes for us to replace our father and his brothers." She looked over at Iolaus before looking back at Hercules. "But I could not allow Mother to hurt you again. She meant to kill Iolaus."

Hercules shook his head. "I should have been expecting Hera to come after Iolaus. She seems determined to kill anyone I get close to." He nodded for Iolaus to move his shirt and began to stitch up the wound on her side. "What's your name?"

Liliandra held tight to Iolaus's hand as Hercules worked to close up her wound. "Liliandra," she whispered, coughing again. Her vision blurred slightly as she looked up at Iolaus. "I am glad that I was able to save you, Iolaus. You are an amazing protector. I watched how bravely you fought those men before the dagger was revealed." She gave him a small smile, her head falling to the side as she passed out.

Iolaus growled in frustration, leaning over to make sure Liliandra was still breathing. He stared at Hercules. "There has to be an antidote for the poison. Right?!"

Hercules nodded, standing up and scooping Liliandra into his arms. "We're not going to Corinth," he responded. "We're taking her to Athens."


End file.
